Love Is a Weapon
by gamekeeper
Summary: The rebellion never happened. The Quarter Quell is that all couples from 12-18 must either compete in the Games as one, or the alternative is to never speak to one another ever again. The Capitol are using love as a weapon, but can Madge and Gale fight it?
1. Chapter 1

Madge POV

"Stop! Stop! Ladies and gentlemen, I am pleased to present the victors of the Seventy-fourth Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark! I give you – the tributes of District 12!"

For a second, everyone is silent in awe. But like a gun at the start of the race, everyone breaks into a wild, crazy scream. Hugs are exchanged, laughter and joy to be heard for miles. My eyes widen as I look up at the screen and tears of joy and shock slide down my flustered cheeks and join in the shrieking and laughing of everyone else of District 12, because for the first time in about twenty-four years, we not only have one victor, but two. I look at the Everdeen family, and cannot help but start crying again because Prim (Katniss' sister) literally is smiling from ear to ear, and the happiest person I think I have ever seen. I feel overwhelmed by the rush of love I have for everyone – for once, nobody questions me as the 'Mayor's daughter' or even 'Miss Undersee'. I'm just Madge. And it feels good.

We all dance and sing in the town square for which feels like years, and we're all happy and nobody cares if you're from Seam or if you're Merchant as we all talk and joke around. I mean, hasn't somebody from Seam and somebody from Town just won the Hunger Games? Surely we can all resolve our issues now? Of course, me being the Mayor's daughter means nobody will resolve theirs with me. I'm too wealthy, posh, too much of a snob. They believe I think I am better than them. I sigh, I shouldn't let my usual thoughts worry me, Katniss and Peeta have just won! My only friends who I thought I had lost are coming back, and the thought is so powerful that it blocks the rest of the pathetic little worries I have in my head.

At last, in the early hours of the morning, people are starting to leave so I decide I should probably depart too. Not that many people would miss me.

I kick the gravelly earth with my white pristine shoes, still smiling when I hear a sound. I realise its pitch black, and I've taken the narrow short cut round to my house where most people from Seam walk down too. I gulp down my fear and look straight ahead, and quicken my pace.

Suddenly, I feel a sweaty hand on my shoulder. I jerk back, only for the hand to dig deeper into my collar bone. I turn around to see none other then Fir Redwood, who is my age and lives on the streets of Seam, well known for mistreating girls.

"Get off me Fir, now!" I whisper shakily. He just laughs and says something incoherent, he's drunk.

He tries to kiss me, and I can feel his sickly warm breath on mine and it takes me all the courage I can muster to spit in his face. He doesn't like this one bit, because his facial expressions turn from leering to anger.

"You'll pay for that, Daddy's girl!" He growls, and pulls me closer. I whimper and close my eyes, wishing I was still in the town square dancing and being normal for once.

He pushes me on the cold, hard ground and my dress rips. He laughs again. I can feel hot, wet tears streaming down my face.

"Aw, don't cry princess I'll make it all better…" But just then, it's almost as if he is being lifted in the air by a crane or something, but then I see the other boy. Or man, should I say. I prop myself on my elbows to get a better view of what the hell's happening.

"Stay away from her, or I mean it I'll kill you!" The voice sounds familiar. Huh.

The man punches Fir in the face, kicks him in the groin and decides that's enough, seeing he's drunk he'll probably just end up unconscious anyway.

The man gives me his hand and I take it, gratefully.

"Thank you so much, if you hadn't came I. . . I don't know what would've happened. I cannot tell you how grateful I am."

"It's fine, Madge, or you okay?" Says Gale. _Gale. _Gale Hawthorne, the boy who hates me.

I look into his grey, misty eyes and give him a half-hearted smile.

"I'm sure I'll be fine. Thanks again, bye." I'm crying again and I don't want him to see.

"Hey! Madge come back!" He runs after me until I have to stop.

"Gale, I'm fine. Really." I sniffle. God, I sound pathetic.

"At least let me walk you home, then." He says, and I don't resist, because I'm afraid.

We walk in silence, but it's not awkward. Just . . . peaceful. Almost. I cannot believe that Gale Hawthorne of all the people found me pressed against the floor, about to be beaten or worse, and that he came to my rescue. It's not that I didn't expect him to help it's just. . . confusing.

"I can't believe guys like that, especially on days like today. Should have been a happy day, for everyone. I'm really sorry but glad I came in time." He says.

"Gale, don't worry about me I'm fine. Not like anybody would care if anything did happen." I mutter.

Gale frowns. "I'd care."

I laugh. "Yeah, right. I thought you hated me, Gale."

"I don't hate you, Madge. You're so beautiful that I get intimidated, I guess."

He smiles, caresses my face and leaves me, mouth open. Just like that.

I watch him walk away, still unsure of what happened. Maybe I'm dreaming, I thought to myself. Yes, that's it. A dream. But when I walk through the door of my house, the painful screams of my mother are too realistic to be a dream. Gale actually helped me. And said I was beautiful. Apart from the way that disgusting boy Fir Redwood made me feel, I feel ecstatic.

Katniss and Peeta are coming home. Gale Hawthorne saved me, said I was beautiful. And when I got in, I had another surprise.

"Because you've been working so hard this year, Margaret, I decided you deserve an award. Close your eyes." My father says kindly. I close my eyes, expecting clothes or money or something worthless. But instead, in my hands I feel soft fur and the sound of a 'bark'.

My father bought me a puppy. He was gorgeous, brown with tufts of hair sticking out, fluffy ears and a button nose. I shriek in admiration, and hug my father with the puppy still in my arms.

"I'll call him Victor, you know, because of Katniss and Peeta." I say, tears threatening in my eyes.

"That's a beautiful name given by a beautiful girl." Says father, and he kisses my head.

I fall asleep, for the first time in years, truly happy.

**A/N; Thank you for reading, I'll be updating another chapter very soon! I'd appreciate reviews and any follow/favourites! Do you like the whole Gale saviour thing? I'm not sure if it worked so I'd be so grateful for your opinions! Thanks –Erin.**


	2. Chapter 2

Gale POV

I walk away into the cold night, before I do something even more stupid. _She's the freaking mayor's daughter, Gale,_ I think to myself. Jeez, what's wrong with me today? She just looked so beautiful, with her golden hair lapping in the wind, her pink lips shivering slightly in the freezing cold and she just looked so . . . innocent. I just couldn't help myself.

What am I even thinking? Jesus, Gale, focus. You cannot like _Madge Undersee._

Man, what I wouldn't do to punch Fir Redwood again. If he had hurt her, I would've killed the piece of scum.

I try to forget about Madge, but even though I think of other things, she's still there in the corner of my mind, with her big blue eyes and perfect lips and . . .

Stop. You like Katniss, not Madge. I guess just seeing Katniss 'in love' with that town boy just made me feel like I should move on. But she doesn't love him, does she? No, I can see it in her eyes. It's the same look she gets when she's approaching prey on a hunt, pretending she's not going to hurt it then BAM, out of nowhere an arrow in the heart. I hope that's how she feels of Peeta.

I reach the dirty outskirts of Seam and slow my pace, as I realise I've basically been running all the way from town to home. I wipe the sweat off my brow, and rest for a minute by an old tree next to the Hob when I hear footsteps behind me.

"Alright, man?" asks Thom, sitting down next to me.

"Yeah, not bad, you?" I say, not really paying attention until I look at his arm which in a bloody, dirty sling. "Jesus, Thom what the hell did you do?"

Thom smiles and shakes his head. "Doesn't matter," he mutters.

I give him a pressing look that says it does matter. "Spill."

He sighs and unfolds his arms carefully, so not to hurt his injured arm. "Well, it's stupid really. I had a fight with Fir Redwood and . . ." he doesn't have time to finish his sentence.

"What?! That scum did this to you? Wait until I find him," I mumble to myself. Thom looks concerned by my sudden intake of intensity, and lifts an eyebrow.

"You okay, man?" he asks.

"It's nothing, I just really can't stand that guy," I say. "You see, I was walking back from the viewing, you know when everyone stopped celebrating. And I saw Redwood and Madge . . . and if I weren't having been there, I don't know what would've happened." I shudder.

"Madge Undersee? As in, the Mayor's daughter?" Thom repeats, picking at his mangled arm.

"The very one. Was a bit shook up so I walked her home." I left out the bit where I called her beautiful and touched her cheek.

"God, I hate Redwood. Glad you were there, man. She's an okay girl, you know. Obviously way out of our league, but she doesn't act like it, if you get what I'm trying to say."

"Yeah. Laid back, I guess," I sigh. What was I doing, backing Madge up? You like Katniss, stupid. But I can't help but think it.

"It's late, see you tomorrow Gale." he says.

"Yeah," I watch him leave. "Bye."

I sit motionless against the tree, and think of nothing. I just watch the brown and yellow leaves fly across the black, coal infested ground and let my mind go blank. Of course, after a bit I come to my senses and decide to head home, but it was nice, only for about half an hour just to have peace.

I walk the short distance to where there was a tiny, covered in coal (no matter how hard my mother scrubbed at it) home. When I open the rusty door, my mother embraces me.

"Don't ever do that to me again! I was worried sick, oh, my baby!" she hugs me.

"Mom, I'm fine. Just met up with Thom, I'm sorry if I worried you," I mutter, slightly embarrassed by her reaction.

"For the love of Panem, Gale, you could've at least told your old Ma! I was going half crazy with Pose to look after, and Vick going nuts." She nods to where they both sleep next to the blazing fireplace.

"Sorry, mom. Forgot. Where's Rory?" I ask. God, she makes me feel guilty, if only I could tell her I was actually saving the Mayor's daughter. But no, I wouldn't do that to Madge.

Why do I keep thinking about her? I do not like her. It's a mere fact.

"Sent 'em out looking for you a few hours back, actually. Oh, god, where is he?" she panics.

We wait hours, and I offer to go out looking for him but she doesn't let me.

"Just wait. He'll be back any second, and if I let you go he'll probably be back as soon as you leave the house. Please, Gale," she pleads. I look into her grey eyes, and know I'll stay. For her.

"Fine. But if he's not back in two hours, I'm going out looking."

We wait, but there's no sign of Rory. After an hour and a half, I start to think the worse. Taken by peacekeepers, beat up, kidnapped, killed, trapped behind the fence, unconscious somewhere, but the absolute worse thought I get is of Fir Redwood getting him. That is the moment I just couldn't take it anymore, but as soon as I reached the door, somebody was pushing against the door too.

Rory.

My mother shrieks and says the same sort of thing she told me, only she hugs Rory for longer, as he does not resist.

"Where the hell have you been?" I ask.

"I went looking for you!" he shouts. "Where were_ you_?"

"I came back ages ago!" the kid looks frozen to death, so I pull him towards me and embrace him. "For Panem's sake, Rory, you're freezing."

I carry Rory as if he was Posy's age, and lay him next to the roasting fire and put a thick, old blanket around him. Should keep him warm.

Feeling relieved and very tired, I decide to sleep. All in all, it's been a pretty long day, what with Katniss and Peeta winning, the massive celebration, beating up Fir Redwood, being actually nice to Madge, not sullen as I am usually with her, running all the way back to the Seam, meeting Thom and Rory going missing – but it's actually been quite a good day. I lie back, and fall into blissful sleep.

**A/N; So sorry I haven't updated very fast! Didn't think you guys liked it, but I did get some really nice reviews so I've decided to keep this story going, because I really do love Gadge :3 Thank you for all the support! Reviews mean so much to me, as do follows/faveourites. –erin.**


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